As Space Year 2012 fades into the unreachable yesterday of history, we at RPS have developed preservation technologies that allow us to transmit past articles toward the future. So it is that we’re able to capture some of the highlights of the site from the last twelve months, and as with every year, among the highest of those heights are the Gaming Made Me entries. These reflections on games aren’t nostalgia, but rather personal accounts of defining moments, and that’s what makes them special. 2012′s are every bit as splendid as ever.

While clearly the RPS hivemind’s preference is to stay locked in our dungeons, never speaking to Others, occasionally we must break from comfort. And so it is we speak to those responsible for the games we play. 125 times this year, in fact. Of that large selection, below you’ll find some of the highlights.

Just because we have been that much more effusive in our love for 24 particular games of 2012 does not mean we don’t also love many more games. 2012′s been one of the best years for games in living memory, and if you say otherwise you’re not living and you have a broken memory. It saddens the hivemind’s emotion generator 3000 that the below games could not be included in our calendar of calendars, but let us now salute them for their fine, brilliant and most varied work.> (more…)

And so it is complete, all 24 doors ripped open, the destination reached. What a time it’s been, as we’ve divulged our 24 favourite games of 2012, and you’ve expressed why we’re wrong. Please do continue to do so, as you spend a tired Christmas afternoon exploring our celebratory articles, while your relatives begin the traditional zebra jousting in the courtyards.

Each number above uses some form of internet voodoo to link to the relevant article. Remember, they were in no particular order, except for the 24th which is our game of the year whether you like it or not. We only don’t include Horace’s Endless Christmas in the list out of misplaced modesty. You can see the complete list of included games below.

Our Senior Scottish Correspondent makes a welcome guest appearance to talk about an important PC game that wasn’t in our just-concluded advent calendar, but perhaps should have been. This is also an ode to the mysteries and the magic of the device we choose to play our videogames on.> (more…)

As RPS winds down for the Christmas break, you need not fear. We’ll still be posting some splendid things throughout the holidays. But today – the gift-givingest day of the year – we have a special surprise treat for you! A Rock, Paper, Shotgun game! Horace’s Endless Christmas explores the blasphemous horror of what would happen were Horace The Endless Bear to lose his infiniteness. You can get it for PC, Mac and Linux below!

Okay, okay. There’s still the rest of today, so enough time for you to get out and pick up some more board games as great gifts. I’m going to roll the rest of my boardgames of Christmas into this post, to make it easier for all of you and easier for me. Is that cool? To hell with the 12 days. I’ve given you four updates, and this fifth will be a nice round-up of the rest, and then you can go buy them all and I’ll take a lie down. Before I do that, though, let me just speak on something important. Let’s get emotional. Don’t I always end up getting emotional?

And so our journey comes to an end. Santa, King Of Hell, has been slain. And all that remains is for us to divine the game of the year from his black and smoking entrails. But what could that be? And what is love? Haddaway didn’t know. But we do. Read on for enlightenment. (more…)